Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Psalm 62:1

“Well all’s I know is Mama’s gonna take some naps.”

I had asked what her day out of school plans were. We were on our way to meet her Mama and Daddy who had spent the weekend in Boston and were flying in. She’d talked to her Mama and knew she was “just exhausted.” Her mama is my sister and when my niece explained the next day’s plans would include a nap or two my response seemed perfectly reasonable.

“I love a nap.”

She said she sure did know that. I’m famous in our family for my ability to nap. Her Daddy once pointed to a ledge of a bookshelf, no more than 6 inches wide and said to whomever he was describing my napping skills prowess,

“You see that ledge right there? Amy Martin can climb up on that ledge and nap for 3 hours solid.”

It was an exaggeration of course, my sizable derrière would not have been supported by the shelf, but not that much of an exaggeration. I could indeed sleep a solid 3 hours.

I do love a nap and it is true, it takes very little in the way of accommodations for me to nap well.

Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between his shoulders. Deuteronomy 33:12

When I was in kindergarten decades and decades ago, I got 2 naps per day, the first in the morning under the teacher’s desk, and the second in the afternoon alongside my 5-year-old peers.

Naps serve to rejuvenate me and help me feel refreshed. Occasionally I’ll have the “wake up and have no idea what time, much less what day it is” nap, but that’s not an everyday occurrence. I also rarely nap in my bed. I don’t usually nap on the ledge of a shelf, but my best nap work is done on a sofa, in a recliner, or a hammock.

I rest well when I nap and once I am no longer post nap groggy I am more productive and can think so much more clearly.

I know there are those who are in the anti-nap camp. Those who are unable to sleep the following night after a nap, or those who reserve naps for special occasions like Thanksgiving or limited only to Sunday afternoons.

My sister is not as good at napping as I am, despite our genetic makeup being the same. So I knew it was serious business when my niece declared her Mama would spend a good part of the next day napping.

I thought as we drove on to the meeting destination about how the King desires us to rest well. To bring our heavy burdens to him and there we will find rest. For myself, the act of rest must be intentional, just as intentional as my quiet time, or serving the King. Rest doesn’t necessarily mean a nap, and despite being skilled in the art of napping, I have to make myself rest. Rest doesn’t always equate nap but sometimes it does.

When I am depleted, I am ineffective and the enemy of my soul knows that. I must make concerted efforts to find rest, allow myself to be filled with the good things and to allow myself to find rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:29